Conventionally, in manufacturing processes of, for example, semiconductor devices, a plasma film formation step or a plasma etching step using plasma has been employed in order to achieve higher definition and thinner films. Such steps are performed using a plasma processing apparatus.
Plasma processing using a plasma processing apparatus is generally performed by generating plasma within a vacuum processing chamber (chamber). In order to generate the plasma, the plasma processing apparatus is provided with a power introduction terminal (a current introduction terminal) for introducing power (a current) into the chamber. By introducing power (a current) into the chamber from an external power source via such power introduction terminal, gas inside the chamber can be turned into plasma.
Examples of conventional plasma processing apparatuses and power introduction terminals include those disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1 below. The power introduction terminal disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes: an insulator having one end attached in a terminal insertion hole formed through a wall of a chamber and the other end on the opposite side of said one end; and a rod-like electrical conductor inserted in a through hole formed through the insulator.